Classes had just ended for the day, and I was excited to hang out with my friends and discuss the latest gossip. Texting away furiously, I made the mistake of looking up for a slight second and, for lack of a better phrase, was scarred for life.

A senior boy and his girlfriend were busy eating each other's faces by the side door of the library. And just my luck, that was exactly the door I had to enter to reach my friends. I cautiously walked over and, being the naive freshman I was, I politely waited.

Ten minutes passed. Although the smart thing to do would have been to walk to the other door on the opposite end, I was too lazy.

"Excuse me, Mr. and Mrs. KissyFace," I said rudely, "this is a public area and not a kissing booth." Despite having drool dripping down their faces, they at least had the sense to apologize and resume their dirty deeds somewhere else.

Some people aren't bothered by public displays of affection, or PDA, but I am not one of them. PDA is vying for the top spot on my extensive (about 100) list of pet peeves. As a teenager whose social skills are grossly underdeveloped and whose capacity to understand the mysterious ways of showing affection is still being formed, I feel it is my duty to let lovebirds know that PDA is not only embarrassing for them but equally embarrassing for prudish onlookers, such as me. But is it really "prudish" to expect a certain level of decorum?

We know you PDA-ers are deep in love, but show some sympathy for the rest of us. It is extremely awkward and a bit irritating to witness this sort of thing on a daily basis. When it comes to social media, PDA does not make for a good profile picture. For some reason, people seem to think sucking face is "cute" and will "get the most likes," but, unfortunately, all you're doing is making a spectacle of yourself. As we Catholic schoolkids like to say, leave some space for Jesus when taking pictures together.

Of course, there are appropriate times and places for PDA. For example, school dances such as prom call for a little extra. And, of course, my opinion on this subject is likely to change if -- when -- I have, as my English teacher says, a "sweetie-beets" of my own. Until then, holding hands and the occasional hug is about as much as I'd like to see. You know it's excessive when you start to wonder if there's such a thing as Super Glue ChapStick.

So I've taken the liberty of coming up with some guidelines that will make PDA a pleasant experience for both the onlookers and the participants:

1. Think of the children! Make sure there are no little ones around before you scar them forever.

2. No PDA during breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack or any time someone's eating nearby.

3. Limit yourself to footsie under the table. Put yourself in your third-wheeling friend's shoes, and be sympathetic to her plight.

I speak from personal experience; it's more uncomfortable than waving back at someone who was not waving at you.

And remember this: No PDA a day keeps the doctor away. Literally.

The Life in Perspective board is made up of teens who write for the features sections. Vaishnavi Kashyap attends St. Francis High School in Mountain View. Reach her at lip@bayareanewsgroup.com.